Friday Coffee with PJ

Currently on my second cup of coffee (or is it my third?) ... well, who's counting! Thanks for stopping by
today!

1. Yesterday I performed one of my pastoral "duties." I officiated a memorial service. Increasingly in our society, funerals are seen as "celebrations: (in fact, the expression "celebration of life" is really in vogue -  as you will see when you read an obituary). Gone are the days of black attire and somber moods. Now its all about celebrating the good things a person did and being glad he or she is in a "better place" - wherever that might happen to be! The sad thing about many funerals today is that all the celebrating is not based on any solid foundation. Not so with the memorial service I was privileged to lead yesterday! The woman who had died had indeed left behind the fruit of a "well lived life." What made her life so was her devotion to Jesus Christ, her love for her family, and her compassion toward others. It was a joy to celebrate her life. But what really made the service was the celebration of the gospel! For it is only through the GOOD NEWS that God so loved us that he gave his Son, Jesus, to die for us ... that we can have a celebration that really matters! In Christ we find joy in this life and hope for the next! Have you found that joy? That hope? If not, please take a moment and consider Two Ways to Live: The Choice We All Face. 

2. Twice this week I took some time to fish at some nearby ponds. The first evening ... success ... catching a half a dozen fish with some of NICE size. Last evening I went out again and quick after an hour. Nary a hit ... nary a nibble. Guess the fish had already dined by the time I arrived (But as a friend once reminded me, that's why it's called "fishing" and not "catching!). All of us are called to be fishermen. Yep! Jesus in the gospels issued the call to his disciples (many who were fishermen by vocation) to follow him and he would make them fishers of men (Matthew 4:19). How about you? Are you living your life intentionally on mission? Seeking to point people toward the Savior by what you say ... and how you live? To help you in this vital arena of our faith journey, we will be introducing two exciting mini-series on Sunday mornings this fall - stay tuned for details! But for now, here's a resource that will require a 60 second investment each day. But if you do so, you will be a better fisherman for sure! Check out The Way of the Master's Minute devotional! It's good stuff.

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj